More Movies-Anthony Mann's Western "The Naked Spur"

Whew! It sure is hot as %$&# here on the NC side of the NC-Va. border. There are literally 35 things I want to blog about but since I'm baking faster than a lobster in a pot, I'll stick with my favorite subject_ the cinema.

In the summer of 2002, I began to take film studies classes at Hollins University in my hometown of Roanoke, Va. One of the classes I was in was a Study of the Western Genre. It was taught by renown westerns expert Ed Buscombe from the UK, who has worked with the British Film Institute and has recently published a new book about 'the greatest westerns of all time.'

Anthony Mann is one of Buscombe's favorite film directors. Mann was a man of many genres, but he is most regarded as being a director of westerns. His credits include the classic films, "Winchester '73," "Bend of the River" and "The Man from Laramie."

But, my personal favorite Mann western is  the 1953 film "The Naked Spur," which also stars Janet Leigh**. The film also features Robert Ryan as a bounty-hunter.It was released on dvd last year.

In the July/August 2006 issue of "Film Comment," Kent Jones cited "The Naked Spur" as his 'vintage pick' choice. The film was yet another collaboration between Mann and Jimmy Stewart, who showcased his dark side in many of Mann's film (Stewart was also working on his Hitchcock collaborations_ "Rear Window" and "Vertigo" in the mid-50s)

Jones said the following about Stewart's performance: "Stewart's hair-raising struggle to contain his own lust for vengance is directly keyed to a perilious trek up, down, and around the rocky terrain- every twist and turn adds to another knot to his character's already taut and frayed psyche."

Jones goes on to call "The Naked Spur" an amazing film experience in which the California and Colorado landscape adds to the emotional terrain that each character faces in this magnificent gem.

"The Naked Spur" also appears on TCM from time-to-time. There was also a more recent profile of Mann in the current issue of "Film Comment." Mann's last film was the epic "El Cid" (1961) with Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren.

http://www.filmlinc.com

** Upon entering this entry earlier, I stated that "The Naked Spur" was Janet Leigh's debut. But, that distinction belongs to "The Romance of Rosy Ridge" (1947). Fortunately, I looked Leigh's filmography up in Epharim Katz's "Film Encyclopedia" before any of my loyal readers caught it.........!